Ulbert tipped his hat and bowed to his old guildmates, "Welcome, gentle all. It has been longer than you know since I saw you last".
"Ulbert? We have the best of the gang back together" Peroroncino laughed happily and pried Shalltear off him. Shalltear who knelt with the other guardians who were waiting, a slight look of disappointment on her face.
After this Peroroncino walked forward and hugged Ulbert.
While this was happening Albedo, Demiurge, Shalltear, Cocytus, Aura and Mare were all kneeling in a row. Lily, Zesshi and I were all standing back, giving the old friends their room to catch up.
All the guardians were shaking in excitement at the return of their Gods.
While Ulbert, Peroroncino, and Ainz were hugging and talking excitedly. Bukubukuchagma and Yamaiko were observing with the air like that of older sisters watching excitable younger brothers. Well Bukubukuchagma was Peroroncino's older sister and Yamaiko considered Peroroncino and Ainz as siblings. A touching moment.
Finally, after the excitement died down, Ainz gestured me and my companions forward. Once we reached the steps leading to the throne we stopped. "Thank you, for re-uniting me with my companions, I owe you a debt. You can consider yourself and ally of Ainz Ooal Gown. I extend the offer of membership if the others don't mind, if you wish."
Lily still seemed a little anxious, but Zesshi was fascinated, so many powerful people.
"I do think there is safety in numbers, and I would wish to get to know you all, but I must admit I do not like the slaughter of innocents, if that would cause any issues in the future I do not know." I wanted them to know. I may not have much of a conscience but there were some things that I would not take part in.
"I do not believe that it will be much of an issue" Ainz said as he glanced at Ulbert and the Demiurge and Albedo.
"Well then, I will be willing to join" I was taking a risk here, but I felt the risk to reward ratio was good.
"Does anyone have any issues with this?" Ainz asked, none of the Players said anything. But Albedo looked up, and looking slightly afraid she said, "Lord Ainz, my beloved, wasn't it a creed of Ainz Ooal Gown to only accept heteromorphs?"
"Beloved?" I heard Yamaiko muttered quietly. Ainz glanced at her, then he turned to me, "That is true, but we may be able to make an exception"
"There is no need for that Ainz" I said as I transformed into my true form. Both Lily and Zesshi looked surprised, neither had seen this before. I then turned back to my human shape. I didn't sense any fear or rejection from my two companions.
"Doppelganger? That takes care of your worries right Albedo?" Ainz asked, Albedo looked at him then bowed her head. "Yes, Lord Ainz, I deeply apologise for my disrespect" Albedo was staring at the floor.
"No need to apologise Albedo, it was a valid point" Ainz looked down with a strange magnificence. He almost looked like a king, his friends other than Ulbert were shocked. So many surprises for these poor people.
I could join the guild, I may have claimed the Greed Kings guild base, but I technically didn't belong to a guild, normally when a guild was defeated and people claimed the base, they then assigned it to their own guild. I had none before this, so instead of the Greed Kings, it was purely owned by me and guildless. This was added in the last patch, when people were complaining about not being able to liberate or claim bases if they had a guild, or not being able to join a guild if they ever fought a guild base.
Ainz moved his hand and added me to the guild registry, there was a strange flash of light around me. "What about my companions?"
"They are recorded in the registry"
"Thank you Ainz" After I did this Ainz gestured for the Guardians to leave. "You know where my quarters are Lord Peroroncino" Shalltear winked and bit her lower lip and she turned and left with the others.
Peroroncino was the first the speak, "Shalltear is so awesome!", and with a smack Bukubukuchagma slapped the back of his head again.
"Oww" he muttered quietly and glared at his sister.
Shaking her head, Yamaiko sighed, and then turned to Ainz, "Why did Albedo call you beloved?"
"…" Ainz started to say something, then he stopped and then tried again.
Ulbert started laughing, and Ainz turned to him and glared then he spoke, "I…I changed her settings before the shutdown…to 'She is madly in love with Momonga'" the closer he got to the end, the quieter he got.
"Good job, Momo!" Peroroncino laughed and held his hand up for a high five, to which Ainz responded while acting embarrassed. "Oh Momo, you are almost as bad as Peron" Bukubukuchagma responded with an exasperated tone.
"Oh dear" Yamaiko sighed.
These people were really close, I had wished many times to have friends like this. I did have some since coming here, but they usually went off for other things.
"So, Tek, our newest brother, tell us a little about yourself" Bukubukuchagma turned to me.
"Before I came here, I lived and played, not much else. As for after, it is a long story…I saved a friend from a fate worse than death, I then travelled with her and investigated the dwarven territories and destroyed the theocracy and liberated the elven kingdom, these are the very shortened versions" I smiled as I talked.
Though these people didn't seem too bad, I decided to keep Rael as a trump card.
"A fate worse than death?" Yamaiko asked.
"Yeah, she was going to get captured and who knows what done to her" I didn't elaborate because I didn't want to finger Ainz as some form of villain, he was doing it for a reason and he did let her go.
"A lot has happened since I arrived" Ainz seemed to groan as he sat down, "But one thing I must warn you of, your race can change your way of thinking, especially if you are not careful"
"I have been alone and had to lead the entire guild, I must admit I did some things that may be taken as bad from Earth. But it was for my Family, you guys and the whole of Nazarick. Using Albedo and Demiurge's help I have plans to conquer this world to make a utopia, where all can live together, with no racial discrimination" Ainz seemed a little nervous.
"I agree with Momo's view, and he has done it with the least death possible from what he has said, look at E-Rantel, and the Empire, both are flourishing under his rule" Ulbert chimed in.
"My next plan is to ally with the dwarves, then a pawn in the Kingdom shall also help get it into the fold" Ainz had some plans, none of the others seemed bothered by them.
They all sounded excited, as they discussed possibilities, I didn't talk much as I watched. I am more of the sort who sits in the shadow, when in groupings. Fading into the background is good.
"Do you require a room?" Ainz turned to me. "No, but thank you for the offer, I like exploring and wandering around" I smiled.
"I see, what are your next plans then?" He did have the right to ask me, I was his new guildmember and he was guild master. That and it was in no way a secret.
"I might head to the Katze plains again and see if I missed anything from last time I was there, the I probably will go to Re-Estize"
"While you are in Re-Estize, could you meet our mole and see if she has any interesting news? Her name is Renner. The princess" Ainz asked.
"Sure"
"Thank you, I shall open a gate for you" Ainz turned and cast gate. "If you wish to come back, here are some scrolls that will teleport you to the entrance"
"Thank you Ainz" I said as I stepped through the gate, Zesshi and Lily following.
I was greeted with a vast empty plain; the ground was chewed up and seemed to be dyed crimson. It was the location of the fight between the Empire, Kingdom, and Ainz. The hole where Ulbert was found was virtually invisible.
"Woah! What happened here Lord Tek?" Lily looked around, her nose wrinkled like there was still a bad scent.
"Ainz demonstrated his capabilities" I smiled as both Zesshi and Lily looked slightly scared.
"Don't worry, I do not believe he is a bad guy" I comforted the shaking cat.
"Now, let us go exploring, I feel like I missed something" I said as I walked away from the battlefield, a fog started to gather. I heard sounds in the fog. The grating of armour and the quiet murmur of voice, repeating something over and over.
The fog was so thick that I could barely see a few metres in front of myself, "Lord Tek, I don't like it here" Lily said quietly. "Alright, I will get Greed to teleport you out, please check up on the elves?" I said as I message Greed and the gate opened. "I am sorry Lord Tek" Lily looked at me with teary eyes. "It's ok, it's ok to be scared"
Lily entered the gate.
(A/N: I may seem like I am disregarding Lily, but the next arc builds between Tek and Zesshi, and other characters. Lily will get her time, my Nekomimi loving brothers in arms. Though in the review, can people say if there should be romance and who with? I can't decide lol. (No BL, though Yuri is fine, like Shalltear and Lily: In a Victorian themed room, Lily's soft furry tail ran down Shalltear's naked and glistening body, eliciting small moans of pleasure from the vulnerable little vampire. Shalltear's hands following the path of the tail, finally arriving between her thighs as a sweet scent filled the room…Ahem, I should probably keep this rated "T". Mua-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!) /A/N)
"Tek, I trust you" Zesshi said as she stood beside me. "Thanks" I grinned. The mist got thicker and thicker and the words got louder, but I couldn't understand them.
My skin started crawling, I felt power, and something similar to when the world changed. Like the world slipped sideways. I felt Zesshi's hand grasp me, her breathing sped up, it was understandable, even I was starting to feel strange.
I saw scenes appear, of a war, large men running through streets, killing indiscriminately. Families fleeing as shadowy buildings burned.
"Do you wish to continue, take this chance and leave, live" a quiet female voice rang out. "They did evil things, for this they were cursed. You have killed, but if you turn back…"
The voice rang out again. I had stopped when she started talking, it was strange, what had happened here? According to the book by Cstal there should have been a fight, but she didn't say what happened after.
"Who are you?"
"I am sadness, death, despair…REVENGE" on the last word the voice turned creepy, echoing off the mist, ringing in my ears as the word repeated, again and again.
"The death in this place, the darkness, the coming of Surshana called me" the voice went back to that of a young woman, sweet and pleasing to the ears.
"Surshana died, that was Ainz Ooal Gown"
"Death may die, but it takes endless aeons. I recognised the aura of a God of death, but also a God of life" a beautiful woman formed out of the mist, wearing a black robe, in her hand was a staff made of bone. "I left this spell, for the trigger would mean a repeat of the tragedy, so I offer you the choice, leave or die"
"I choose to stay, I wish to see what happened, what lead to this" I said, Zesshi was clinging to me, but when I looked to her she nodded, showing she wished to know too. If she had shaken her head or tried to pull me away I would have left.
"So be it, your death is on your own head" the woman sighed and made a gesture. I suddenly heard a deep voice chanting in a language I didn't know. A man is white armour stood next to the woman, a glow surrounding him.
The fog eddied and suddenly cleared. A sword swung at my head from centimetres away, for a Player this was no threat. I caught it and shattered the blade by tensing my hand. I saw Zesshi grab her scythe.
The soldiers surrounded us.
Suddenly a loud rumbling rang out, the ground shook as a figure appeared on a hill that appeared in the city, towering over it.
"YOU DARE KILL MY PEOPLE?!" the voice was inhuman, rasping with madness, slobbery and screeching.
"YOU KILLED HER!" the small humanoid jumped down, her long blonde hair covering her face, though two large blood red eyes glowed through the gaps.
"She was my everything!" the creature darted through the soldiers, biting and ripping, soldiers died in droves as blood splashed everywhere.
"She…died…for…me" the voice faded in and out, the creature gestured the soldiers towards her, the madness replaced with sobbing, the thin shoulders shaking.
"L…dfa…" the voice was quiet; the ground shook very lightly near the creature. The soldiers swung at it, but it dodged.
"LandFall"
"Landfall!"
"LANDFALL!" the creature shrieked, its arms to the sky, the ground shaking so hard the cracks were crazily spreading, boulders shot into the air and mountains raised and fell, the walls collapsed.
I grabbed Zesshi and activated [Flight]. Flying up into the air I watched.
The soldiers died, falling into fissures or being skewered by stone spikes.